High tide = Your culture exists beneath the surface

I went for a swim at high tide this morning. The sea looked calm enough, but there was a bit of a backwash, so I watched for a little while to see if it was safe before I went in.

Although from the shore, the sea can look calm, once you're in it, you quickly realise there's a lot happening beneath the surface.

Workplace culture is much the same.

Policies, benefits and company values are what people see from the beach.
But what really shapes people's experience is what's happening underneath: how managers behave, how decisions are made, whether people feel safe to speak up, is there purposeful employee engagement, whether trust exists.

The surface matters. But culture is built below the waterline.

What do you think has the biggest influence on workplace culture beneath the surface?